Netflix dropped the trailer for the fourth season of “The Crown” Thursday, switching fans’ attention from the eagerly anticipated introduction of Princess Diana (played by Emma Corrin) to the arrival of Gillian Anderson’s portrayal of Britain’s formidable first female prime minister, Margaret Thatcher.
And when the Iron Lady reports for duty, she comes ready to challenge Queen Elizabeth II (Olivia Colman) in more ways than the monarch seems to have expected.
Watch “The Crown” Season 4 trailer here and via the video above.
The fourth season of Peter Morgan’s Netflix royal family drama picks up in the late 1970s. Here is the official description:
“Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) and her family find themselves preoccupied with safeguarding the line of succession by securing an appropriate bride for Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor), who is still unmarried at 30. As the nation begins to feel the impact of divisive policies introduced by Britain’s first female Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (Gillian Anderson), tensions arise between her and the Queen which only grow worse as Thatcher leads the country into the Falklands War, generating conflict within the Commonwealth. While Charles’ romance with a young Lady Diana Spencer (Emma Corrin) provides a much-needed fairytale to unite the British people, behind closed doors, the Royal family is becoming increasingly divided.”
“The Crown” Season 4 also stars Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret, Tobias Menzies as The Duke of Edinburgh, Erin Doherty as Princess Anne, Emerald Fennell as Camilla Parker Bowles, Marion Bailey as the Queen Mother, Georgie Glen as Lady Fermoy, Tom Byrne as Prince Andrew, Angue Imrie as Prince Edward, and Charles Dance as Lord Mountbatten. Stephen Boxer also features as Denis Thatcher alongside Rebecca Humphries as Carol Thatcher and Freddie Fox as Mark Thatcher.
“It could be said that they are two very similar women, born only months apart,” Morgan said of Queen Elizabeth and Margaret Thatcher in a statement Thursday. “They are very much defined by the Second World War, by a sense of a sense of frugality, hard work, commitment, Christianity and so much more. It was a commonly held piece of wisdom that the Queen and Thatcher didn’t get on. I think there was probably a lot of respect. But they also had many differences, it was really fun exploring their differences and their similarities. I also get a chance to explore them both as mothers. Writing Thatcher and the Queen as mothers was probably an angle that no one has explored before. It yielded one of my favourite episodes in the season.”
“The Crown” Season 4 premieres Sunday, Nov. 15 on Netflix.